Requiem
by SiNicaL cHiLD
Summary: Animeverse: Postseries. Oneshot. Knives lies in bed, pondering Vash's reason for betraying him. Interesting twist...a must read if you like surprises. R


**A/N: It's been nearly a year since I've done anything Trigun related. Needless to say, I'm happy to be back with all the characters that originally hooked me on anime. This one-shot came from a late night brain-buzz after suffering from a bout of insomnia. Yeah, it's AU-ish, but it's an interesting twist, I thought anyway. Hope you enjoy and have a diSTuRbEd day. R&R**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Trigun, sadly to say. However I would like to mention that I do own Knives…ok…no I don't…no.**

**Before we start:**

**_Italics: Knives thoughts (of course, this is a Knives POV)_**

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**REQUIEM:**

_**Hymn for the Dead**_

The pale blond Plant eased his eyes open, letting himself adjust to the light gradually. Sunlight filtered in through the single four-paned window, particles of dust drifting about lazily. He let his lids shut. It proved too much effort to keep them open. He could feel his own heart beat avidly in his ears with little other sound disrupting the perfect rhythm. As alluring as the melody proved to be, he couldn't help but think about the inapt circumstances he found himself in.

He attempted to sit up out of his reclining position, but the searing pain shooting up through his limbs stopped him. A groan escaped his lips. _How could you do this to me? _He let his body fall back into bed, allowing the pain to subside. He struggled to find an answer to this madness. His own brother, his own flesh, had turned on him. _Why?_

His hands and feet had gone numb from the throbbing sensation that emanated from the gunshots in his upper arms and thighs. His head pounded in rhythm with every pulse of his heart. What had sounded so calming to him before now hurt him to hear. With every ache, the debilitated Plant pondered his inadequacy. _My brother…why did you do it?_

Echoing in his head, he could hear footsteps approaching the small room he was in. They were light, feminine. _That woman…the dark haired one; she was the one stealing Vash from me. She was the one who broke him. She was the one turning brother on brother. _He could feel his blood boil. _The bitch…_

The door creaked open, swinging brusquely on rusted hinges. The Plant half-opened his eyes, leaving much of his vision in a hazy fog. The petite insurance girl walked into his room briskly, holding in her arms a tray with a cup and saucer, as well as a small teapot. She walked past his bed, carrying in her wake a smell of lavender and Earl Gray tea. With delicate hands, she set the tray down on an end table. _She dared to foul the air with her presence?_

As the Plant watched her every move with a peculiar fascination, the girl's eyes fell on his. For a brief second they locked, her beautiful violet irises resting on his ice blue ones, before she averted her gaze from his harsh glare. "Did you sleep well, Mr. Knives?"

For a while, he said nothing. An awkward silence arose between them. _This woman needs to die. _The corners of his mouth raised into a cruel smile. "Do you care?" His tongue was thick and his words elided.

Her answer came quickly, a premeditated response to the question that may arise. "Of course."

He licked his dry lips. "No…you don't. Vash cares for me. YOU pretend to care because that is what my brother wants."

The girl tucked a strand of her short, ebony hair behind her ear. "I've brought tea up for you. Vash said you liked Earl Gray. Would you like me to poor you a cup?"

_She needs to die. If I can't kill her with my hands, I'll kill a part of her. Like she killed a part of Vashu…a part of me._

"Do you have feelings for my brother, spider, do you love him? And don't lie…I'll know it." He narrowed his eyes on the girl.

"I have a name, Mr. Knives. It's Meryl. Now, I'll ask you one more time. Would you like tea?" He was trying her patience. Her cheeks had tinged red with anger or embarrassment, he couldn't tell.

_Don't even try evading the question at hand._

"And I'll ask you one more time." His voice rose aggressively, however, it still cracked from disuse. "Spider, do you have feelings for Vash?"

Meryl turned on her heel, heading for the open door. She paused before reaching the metal frame, her tiny physique tensing. "No."

Her heartbeat had quickened. Even a dunce could sense her unnerved movements. It's rather insulting that she thought she could fool me. 

"You're lying." He betrayed a jocund manner, before returning to his belligerent state. "Answer me now."

Unable to move, she looked away, down casting her eyes. Her voice was low, a whisper. "Yes."

_Her reluctance to answer me made the fruit of my quest all the sweeter._

"And do you wish him to return those feelings?"

She replied quietly. "Yes."

"Foolish insect, you're not even worthy to be in his presence. What makes you think a superior being like Vash could ever love you?" He spat harshly.

The color drained from her face. Her lips tightened into a small, cupid's bow.

_I couldn't help but smile at her body's response. _

She struggled to find the words. "Milly will be up later with your dinner."

_Don't face what you're not ready to, spider, you'll only find yourself hurt._

She left the room, shutting the door as quietly as possible, but the hinges still managed to find a way to let off a nail-grating squeal.

The Plant smiled to himself. If he must be in this house with these _creatures _he was determined to make his stay as painful as possible for them. They were the reason Vash had deceived him. They were the reason his brother had tried to kill the butterfly. Those spiders were an infection of the planet. A pestilence that needed to be eradicated. Why didn't Vash see it that way?

Angry steps approached the door suddenly, and the door flew open with an angry Vash storming into the room. _Speak of the devil_. His tall, blond hair fell droopily, but piercing turquoise eyes stared at the wounded man beneath full eyelashes.

"Knives, what'd you say to Meryl?" He stood at the foot of the twin-sized bed, looming over his debilitated brother.

The fairer Plant spoke, a blatantly teasing tone tainting his words. "Nothing she didn't need to hear."

_She needed to hear every word of it._

"That wasn't the question, Knives."

"I know." He would've spoke all that was on his mind, but he was tired and Vash didn't deserve to know what he felt. Not after what he had done. Let him wonder.

However instead of raising to his brother's wiles, Vash let it go. He attempted to flash one of his dorky grins, but only managed to pass off a half-assed smirk. "Fine, gives me a chance to have a heart-to-heart talk with you. We haven't really had one in a few decades, have we?"

"Why ask me when you already know the answer? Seems rather redundant." He could no longer keep his eyes open. "Now, leave. I need to rest."

"No…I don't think I will." Vash sat himself on the end of the bed, the mattress sinking at his weight. "You see, I think I finally figured out your problem."

You presume to diagnose me? 

He sighed irately, but did not respond.

Vash continued. "You're a coward."

The Plant opened his eyes with a start, choking on his own words. "What!"

"That's right. You had to hide behind the Gung-ho Guns…behind Legato. You could never do any of it yourself."

"You dare call ME cravenly!" His voice was gravely and aggravated. "Who do you think formulated everything? Who do you think devised the downfall of July and Augusta!"

Vash stared intently at the floor. "Through me. You didn't destroy those cities yourself…you used me. Have you ever done anything on your own? Or have you spent your entire life trying to kill me?"

Is that what you really you think I wanted to do, my brother? 

"I never wanted to kill you. I wanted you to be with me."

"How? By killing my friends? The people I love?"

The wounded man snarled defensively. "Those same people who spit on you and run you out of their towns? Those people who use and kill our sisters and brothers? Those same people who are nothing more than parasites?"

Vash looked up at him. His eyes were moistened, but his face emanated kindness. "I don't think we'll ever be able to see things the same way. We're twins, Knives, but we couldn't be more different."

You're right, Vashu, we are different. I never would've hurt you. 

He rose to his feet and left the room, not bothering to look back at his brother. He didn't want the cynical Plant to see the tears streaming down his cheeks.

The wounded blond man turned his head away from the window, fixating on the off-white wall next to him. _I hurt more than you know. _

The teapot and cup remained where that _human_ had set it only 10 minutes earlier. What made her think that he would ever consume anything made by the hands of an insect? She was the cause of all this. He should have let the Gung-ho Guns kill her when they had the chance. That was his mistake. If he could do things differently, he would have had the Gung-ho Guns kill that traitor priest and those meddling insurance girls. He would deal with Vash himself. He was no coward, he would…

_A coward_. Vash called him a coward. Is that why he shot him? Because he thought he was a recreant. Was that the reason Vash let him live? To tell him brazenly to his face that he was dastard?

The Plant coiled his lips in disgust. A spider had crawled up the side of the bed. He stared deadpan at the tiny, black arachnid. Unable to move, he could do nothing but watch as it set two of its thin legs onto his naked arm and proceeded to climb up. Its tickling movements sent waves of chills up his spine. A cold sweat formed on his pale, perfect skin. His inadequacy made the situation all the more horrendous. To be so close to something so inferior. To have it forced on you against your will. The spider's eight legs moved rapidly as it made it's way slyly up his arm…his shoulder…

* * *

Knives awoke with a start. He sat upright in a large futon bed. He fought to catch his breath and still his beating heart. He ran his hands over his bare torso, shaking off any imaginary spiders that may still cling to him despite the thin film of sweat. He sat, panting for several moments, taking in the room. _His _room. The heavy draperies, eloquent wallpaper... _Had it all been a dream?_

The faint sound of a saxophone resonated into his room. _It was a dream. None of it had happened. _Knives ran a hand through his short, blond locks. _Vash had never betrayed me. _His mouth played into a smile. _Nor would he…_

He removed the thick comforter, stepping out of bed on wobbly legs. He stretched slightly before pulling on a pair of loose pants and fastening the belt. He paced the perimeter of his room, touching everything. It was all real.

Knives walked to the antique on the opposite side of the room, his prized possession: a record player from ancient Earth; it had but one vinyl disc. He had been careful to keep it from scratching for it was, in fact, the only thing that the spiders had ever created that Knives enjoyed. A slender hand picked up the needle deftly, placing it on the edge of the black disc. Immediately music flooded the cavernous room. A haunting hymn masterfully produced by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Agnus Dei from his opera, Requiem. Knives found himself lost in the words, completely absorbed in the song's beauty.

"Master?" Legato broke the tranquility with his presence.

Knives refrained from delivering him the punishment he deserved. He was, after all, a loyal servant to the butterfly and a key instrument in the destruction of the spiders. "Do you know what 'requiem' means, Legato?"

Legato seemed to sense his master's hostility and responded with little hesitation. "No, master."

"It's a song of lament for the dead." The Plant watched the record spin round and round with a feeling of enthrallment. _A ballad for the deceased…_

His servant waited for him to speak further, but nothing was said. Minutes passed and the record was nearing its end. Unsurely, Legato paraded the question at hand. "Shall we send out Chapel and Caine? Vash and his followers are nearby."

Knives' cruel smile returned. No…things wouldn't unravel the way they had in his dream. He would stop the problem at its source: Vash. After all, his brother wouldn't betray him if he didn't have the chance. Chapel and Caine would fail him…he knew that. He would have to send those most loyal to him. The elite duo who managed to bring death wherever they went: Legato Bluesummers and Midvalley the Hornfreak. They would not fail.

"No." He paused, letting a maniacal laugh escape his lips. "I want you and Midvalley to go after them. You and the Hornfreak can handle the spiders, I imagine. I'll go after Vash myself…put an end to him once and for all. It would be an insult to let an insect like yourself or the Gung-ho Guns kill my brother. I will at least let him die with dignity." He was after all…no coward. He would complete what he set out to do.

"Of course, master." Legato's monotonous voice almost seemed to reflect excitement in the task at hand.

The song ended and the needle picked itself up and returned to the beginning. Knives ran his hand lovingly over the record player.

_This requiem is for you, Vashu, my brother. _

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**A/N: Sooooo, whatcha think? My first one-shot…is it a keeper? I love reviews and all are welcome. - Kat**


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